


The Power of Three

by vehlr



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Canon Rewrite, F/F, F/M, Feelings Realization, Idiots in Love, Major Character Injury, Multi, Polyamory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-14
Updated: 2019-10-14
Packaged: 2020-12-16 07:11:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21032285
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vehlr/pseuds/vehlr
Summary: The Seeker burns for the Champion. And perhaps for the dwarf, too.If anyone can make it work, it's Hawke.





	The Power of Three

She feels sick.

Cassandra’s heart jumps at the smile on the woman’s lips, dropping again as Varric comes into view. It was a betrayal of sorts, really – to covet a friend’s lover. To covet her best friend’s lover. Maker forgive her.

“Seeker and Hawke! My favourite girls.” He grins, reaching up to kiss Hawke’s cheek. “Hello, gorgeous. Should I be worried you two are colluding?”

“N-no!” Cassandra splutters, and Hawke laughs.

“I just got here, Varric. Would you _like _it if we were colluding?” She waggles her eyebrows, laughing again.

Cassandra’s heart tightens at the sound.

Varric rolls his eyes. “Perish the thought. You want a drink?”

“Always.”

“Seeker?”

“I, ah – I should go. But thank you.” She smiles tightly, turning on her heel. She needed to get out of here, needed to clear her head -

“Oh, that’s a shame.” Hawke’s voice is soft. “We’ll catch up later, alright?” And she leans over to kiss Cassandra’s cheek as Varric beams up at the pair of them.

She can barely make it out of the inn before her knees wobble, heart pounding and breath short. _Maker forgive me. Please. If Varric knew…_

The Seeker burns for the Champion. She knows she has to get out, but for that smile, _oh_. Cassandra would die for that smile.

“Cass, wait up!”

She stops, swallowing. She has to - cannot deny her even a second of her time. “What do you need?”

“Do I need to have a reason to ask you to stop?” Hawke’s hand on her cheek - hot, like the fires that burn within her. She flinches at the touch, cursing herself.

“Cass?”

“Nothing. It is nothing.”

Hawke smiles, that wry disbelieving one - she knows many of Hawke’s smiles now, understands the meaning behind each twist of her lips. She covets them all. “Doesn’t _look_ like nothing,” she says softly. “Looks like a whole lot of something.”

“Champion -”

“Don’t call me that. We’re friends, aren’t we? Call me something friendly.”

“I - Hawke -”

“Friendlier. Try my _actual _name, or something sweeter.” She laughs. “Darling? Sweetheart? Gorgeous? Oh, no, that’s _definitely _Varric’s -”

At the mention of him, Cassandra pulls away, and takes a shaky breath. “Do you - do you love him?”

“Of course I do. What’s not to love?”

“Then why are you - I mean, you are _here_, making such suggestions as to make _me _feel -”

“Can’t I want you both?”

Her heart stops in her chest - she would swear to that, later, that her heart simply stopped at Hawke’s confident confession.

She continues, smile assured. “He _knows_, you know. He knows I’m here, knows how you feel -”

Cassandra splutters. “How -”

“It’s _Varric_,” says Hawke with that fond smile, that comfortable fond smile that only comes out when she speaks of her lover. “He understands people far better than he lets on.”

“But - he knows? And he is not - he is not _angry_ at me?”

“Why would he be angry?”

“Because I -” She catches herself, closing her eyes and shaking her head.

“Because you’re in love with Hawke?” asks a warm familiar voice. “That’s something we have in common, Seeker. Can’t fault you for that.”

“Varric, what are you doing here? I said I’d do it -”

“You’re taking too long. Giving her time to think. Seeker’s dangerous when you let her think.”

It grates at her, grates at the heart of her. Was this a joke? It had to be, some elaborate prank on her - but she opens her eyes to find earnest eyes looking back, and she steps back in surprise.

“Cass,” starts Hawke, but Varric holds a hand up.

“The truth,” he says, smiling. “That’s what you want, right?”

She nods, not quite trusting her voice.

“Tell her, Hawke. Stop flirting and just _tell_ her.”

“I can’t - look, I’m not _good _with the sweet things. The really romantic things. But I _like_ you, Cass. I really like you, and I want you in my life, by my side.”

“But -”

“You’re not replacing Varric, you’re not - I know it’s hard to understand, but I have room in my heart for both of you, and you’re pretty firmly wedged in there. It’s not a competition, it’s just… it’s _there_. It’s alright. It could be great, if you let us try.”

She looks to Varric, who shrugs.

“Seeker, I know you’re not gonna believe it until I say it a few hundred times, but it really is okay with me. You can’t help what the heart wants, and her heart wants both of us.” He smiles, a crooked gentle thing she has not seen before. “Not a bad deal, really. My two best girls getting along.”

Cassandra runs a hand through her hair. “I… I need to think. I need some time to… to understand this.”

“Of course. It’s a lot to process.”

Hawke smiles, and her heart skips. It feels like a start.

* * *

Cassandra did not mean to overhear. She really did not. But she had come to speak to the Champion, had managed to find herself at the door of her quarters… and then she had stopped, hand hovering before the knock.

Varric and Hawke were inside. This much is obvious.

“You were such a good girl, Hawke. Such a good girl. She’ll come around.”

“_Ha_ \- how can you be sure?”

“I did, didn’t I?”

“Oh, fuck - there, there, yes _yes _-”

“You want her to do this to you, don’t you?”

“Yes - oh, Maker, yes -”

“Her fingers fucking you, her lips kissing you -”

“I want you - I want you too - ah, Varric, please, _please_, I want to _come _-”

“Both of us at the same time? I like your thinking, gorgeous, but one step at a time. She needs to come around to the idea of _you _first.”

“You - you want her too, don’t lie -”

“You _know _I do. But all in due time, if she feels the same.”

“She does - oh, Maker’s ass, fuck me, _fuck me _-”

“You don’t read people the way I do, gorgeous.”

“She - she looks at you - when you’re l-looking at me - always looking at us, even - _oh_ \- oh, yes yes yes please _please_ -”

“Come for me, gorgeous. Come for me.”

Cassandra steps away, feet taking her far away from the closed door and those wicked obscene noises, far away from the strange world she found herself in. She finds herself out on the battlements, wind whipping around her and bringing her back to her senses.

Hawke wanted her. That had been a difficult enough mountain to scale, but… Varric? _Varric _wanted her? They had been friends for a few months, barely talking before that - he had lied, and she had pushed, and they were both to blame for that, she knew that much. But… to think of her so fondly, now? To _want _her? She could not fathom it. “Especially given that he has her,” she says aloud, startling herself. After all, she reasons as she wraps her arms around herself and shivers, why would he want for anyone else with Hawke at his side? Why -

A coat falls over her shoulders, heavy and familiar, and her knees shake.

“So, the truth,” starts Varric, offering a weak smile.

“I should not have -”

“Not your fault, Seeker. We, ah… we weren’t exactly quiet.”

She blushes, praying the wind would provide ample cover for her embarrassment. “Still,” she says quietly, “I should not have lingered the way that I did.”

Varric rubs the back of his neck, looking away. “Not your fault. Listen, I -”

“You do not have to say anything, Varric. I -”

“I like you,” he blurts out. “I really… I _really_ like you, Cassandra. But this thing between you and Hawke, that’s… that isn’t about me, or us, or me and Hawke. I’m not telling you because I _expect_ anything, I’m telling you because you deserve to know the truth before you settle things with her. I’m not going to be a part of that, that’s all you.”

She stares at him. “But you _will_ be, you are -”

“No, I won’t. What I have with Hawke, it’s not the same as what you have with her. They’re separate. We both walk into this with eyes open, sure, but what happens with you two doesn’t change anything between me and her, and vice versa.” He smiles slightly. “And yeah, I _like _you, but that doesn’t change anything between us either. I’m still your friend, right?”

“It… does not change anything?”

“Course not. You don’t - I mean, I’m not expecting you to suddenly _fall_ for me, just because of Hawke. Things are just like they are now, except -”

“But I _do_. I mean, I did - I do! But rather, not _because _of -” She stops, shaking her head. “This is complicated, I - I cannot think straight.”

There is a strange look in Varric’s eyes, before he stomps his feet. “It’s cold out here. Can we go inside and unravel this somewhere warm?”

She nods, and he reaches for her hand, leading her gently back towards Hawke’s room. The woman herself is curled up in her bed, a sheepish smile on her lips as the pair enter.

“Mm. You’re back?” Hawke rubs her eyes and Cassandra swallows, looking away.

Varric lets go of her hand. “Pull up a chair, Seeker. I’ll make some tea.”

“He’s so domestic, it’s adorable,” sighs Hawke with a smile, before arranging the sheets over her lap and turning to Cassandra. “So. How’s your thinking going?”

“Don’t ask,” groans Varric from the fire. “We got tangled up out there. Tea first, thinking later.”

“It is - I mean, this is not exactly a situation I am used to.”

Hawke tilts her head sympathetically. “Yeah, it’s… different, I suppose.”

“I have only ever -” She stops, taking a slow breath. “There was one other. Regalyan, a mage who I grew close to before I became the Right Hand.”

“He helped you with the dragons.”

“He did, though few mention his efforts. He was a good man, a kind man, and though our relationship ended a long time ago… I think of him fondly still.” She shifts in her seat. “He died at the Conclave, and -”

“Shit.” Varric passes her a steaming cup. “Sorry. I guess this really is a completely different situation to your standard.”

She smiles up at him. “A little.”

“You’re doing pretty good, to say the least.” He brings Hawke her cup, before settling on the edge of the bed. “I should warn you, Seeker, Hawke’s intense at times. But you’ve probably picked up on that since she turned up.”

“I’m _right _here,” she says with a smile.

“Yeah, and I’m still right. You’re good with pushing people’s buttons and not saying what you mean, and she has a right to know that.”

“But so are you.” Cassandra swallows. “You understand people, you -”

“Yeah, but you’re not considering a relationship with _me_, you’re considering a relationship with Hawke.”

The silence hangs, and Cassandra risks a glance at Hawke. The woman looks insufferably smug.

Varric stares. “Seeker -”

“I meant… I meant what I was trying to say out there, Varric. I… _care_ for you, I have cared for you before the Champion came back -”

“Still here.”

“Shut up, Hawke.”

“But you were with her, and I put those thoughts aside.”

He swallows. “And now -”

“And now,” she repeats slowly, “I realise I do not have to.” She glances between them. “I… I do not have to put _anything _aside. And that is… terrifying.” She smiles slightly. “But good.”

He leans forward, a serious look in his eyes. “I meant what I said, too. Whatever happens between you two - that’s nothing to do with me. You don’t have to - to be with me. Not unless you want to.”

“Oh, for the love of the Maker - Varric, she _wants to!_” Hawke shuffles to the edge of the bed, swatting his arm. “Stop being all noble and ridiculous. You two have been making moon-eyes at each other for weeks, and now you both know where you stand.”

“Where we all stand,” corrects Cassandra.

Hawke smiles, bright and clear, leaning forward. “Yeah. So, we’re doing this? All of us?”

They are looking at her with such intent, and Cassandra feels quite… wanted. Putting down her drink carefully, she stands, moving to sit between them. She takes a deep breath, taking Hawke’s hand in one and Varric’s hand in another.

“All of us.”

Varric smiles, pressing his lips to her shoulder. “As long as you’re sure -”

“Varric, shut up.” Hawke reaches up, fingers light on Cassandra’s cheek. “Hey. Can I kiss you now?”

“Oh - yes. I would like that very much.”

She smiles - a tender curve of the lips, something new that Cassandra knows is special - before leaning in, kissing her softly. Cassandra’s breath catches in her throat, fingers tightening around each of their hands. Hawke pulls her hand back before cupping Cassandra’s face in both hands, pulling her closer as her mouth opens up slightly, a soft moan escaping her.

She feels Varric shift beside her, hand never leaving hers, but his warmth pressing against hers is solid and comforting, his voice rich and warm.

“Hawke -”

She pulls back, cheeks flushed as she grins. “Sorry. That was good. Great.”

Varric chuckles. “Told you. Intense.”

Cassandra laughs, bringing Varric’s hand to her lips and kissing his knuckles. “This is… all very new and strange, and I do not wish to sound ungrateful -”

“You need to take things slow. It’s alright, Seeker.”

Hawke’s hand is warm on her back as she rests her cheek on her shoulder. “It is. Take your time, okay?”

She nods. “Might I come back in the morning? I would like to spend time with you both.”

Hawke kisses the exposed skin at her neck. “That definitely sounds good.”

* * *

After that evening, things fall into place rather quickly. Cassandra spends her free time with one or both of them - in the inn, or either of their rooms. She had awkwardly invited Hawke to her room, but one pointed look at the comforts available in the Champion’s quarters had put that idea to bed.

It takes her three days to stop hesitating before holding Hawke’s hand, and another evening before she finally kisses Varric. He had been happy enough to let Hawke take the lead, watching his two favourite women lazily kiss on the bed as he tended to the piles of letters for the Champion. But Cassandra wants more, and it is only when he stands to stretch out his back that she seizes her chance, pinning him against the desk in an inelegant and desperate embrace.

“Seeker -”

“Shut up,” she breathes, pressing her lips against his. His hands come up around her back, responding enthusiastically as he presses himself against her, desperate moans bubbling from his throat. It is too much and not enough, and she has to force herself to pull away, to look him in the eyes.

“I want you - _both _of you -” She cups his face, her breath hot on his lips as she stares at him. “Why can you not see this?”

That strange look is in his eyes again, and she realises what it is - fear. Her thumbs caress his cheeks, her smile soft.

“Varric. Is it so surprising?”

“Yes.” He swallows. “I mean, no, but -”

Beyond them, Hawke laughs, and Cassandra’s cheeks burn - it would take time to shake the feeling of being caught, of breaking some unwritten rule. “He never expected one of us to want him, never mind two. Poor beleaguered dwarf.”

“Shut up,” he says automatically, but Cassandra understands, tilting his head back to meet her eyes.

“You think so little of yourself -”

Hawke snorts. “Little. Ha!”

“- even now?”

He shifts, his gaze dropping away. “Can we go back to the part where you kissed me?”

“The truth,” she says quietly. “You are more than you see.”

“Kiss him,” says Hawke, smiling warmly. “For a man who’s good with words, he rarely listens to them.”

Cassandra smiles at that, lowering her head as he coaxes her down into a slower kiss, his fingers gentle against the curve of her neck. His tongue drags slowly over her lip, a shiver going through her, and she responds with fervour, willing him to understand the her desire for him. Time seems to slow, and when he finally lets her go she feels far too warm for the room.

Hawke whistles, long and low. “You two are _hot_.”

“Can I -” He stops, clearing his throat. “I mean, I want to - only if you -”

For once it is Hawke who stops him, her hands light on their waists. “Hey. Not today. She’s got that meeting in the morning, and I plan on wearing her out when we finally get her into bed.” She waggles her eyebrows, and Varric laughs.

Cassandra kisses her cheek, a murmured thanks. In her heart, she wants to be ready, wants to make them both happy, but everything is happening at some speed. Like Varric, she still needs time to come to terms with it all.

It would come, of that she had no doubt.

* * *

It comes in the quiet, as these things do.

Varric sits up against the headboard, reading from the latest chapter of a book he had found in her room. Not one of his - that secret remained safe, for now - but he had called it trashy nonetheless, laughing as he adopted a suitably dramatic voice.

Somewhere between the pages, however, she had ended up lying next to him, head in his lap, and he had lowered his voice to a more soothing tone, indulging her. Cassandra smiles as his free hand rests on her shoulder, his solid warmth comforting.

“Varric?”

“Mm?”

“I love you.”

The words come easily, her smile gentle as she looks up at him. He stills, the book gently closed and placed aside before he coaxes her up.

“Say it again?”

She takes his hand in hers, thumbs rolling over his knuckles. “I love you. I know it is not easy to say, or quick to realise, and I do not expect to hear it back -”

“Hey.” He smiles, blinking back tears. “I'm not Hawke, you know. I'm not - I _can_ say it. I can.”

“Not today.” She kisses his palm. “When you are ready, and not a moment before.”

“Yeah.” He shifts, pulling her gaze back to his. “But I do. You know that, right?”

“Yes.”

“And Hawke does. You know that, right? She'll never say it, but… she does.”

“I know. But I am… not one to shy from the truth, and I wanted to tell you -”

“Say it again,” he asks, looking a little sheepish. “Please?”

She laughs, leaning over to kiss him. Just before her lips meet his, she whispers it once more.

“I love you, Varric.”

He makes a soft noise, silenced by her mouth, and she crawls into his lap, hands curling around his face. She feels light, as if she might float away if she lets go of him, and he is more than happy to tether her, arms wrapping around her waist as he deepens the kiss. Something changes in the air around them, something electric, and she grinds her hips against the hardness in his breeches, eliciting another moan from him. Her hands tug at his shirt, peeling it off his shoulders, palms sliding against his skin.

He pulls back, staring up at her with huge eyes. “Cassandra -”

A noise from across the room draws their attention. Hawke stands in the doorway, her mouth open as she watches them.

“I, uhm.”

They watch her shift slightly, and Cassandra swallows. “Hawke.”

“Can I -” She swallows. “Cass, can we… together?”

She shares a look with Varric, smiling slightly. “Varric? Will you… help me?”

He smiles, stroking her cheek softly. “Sure thing, sweetheart. Let’s rock our Champion’s world.”

She reaches out, and Hawke almost falls over running to the bed, mouth colliding with hers in a desperate gasp. Their clothes are thrown aside, mouths and hands and skin merging into one, and as Hawke throws off her breast-band she grins.

“Cass - oh, Cass, the things I’m gonna -”

“Not tonight,” smiles the Seeker, “tonight is for you.”

She looks confused for a moment, before Varric’s hands slide around her hips. “Oh. Oh, you two.” She laughs, a throaty noise as she relaxes against her lovers. “How did I get so lucky?”

“You’re about to get luckier,” teases Varric. “Just lie back and relax. Seeker, take your time and get to know her.”

Cassandra’s hands do not tremble, though she is sure her nerves must show in her face. Sliding her fingers delicately up Hawke’s thighs, she watches the woman’s face, the anticipation, the way her breath hitches as she gets closer and closer to her core.

“I have never -”

“I know.” Hawke swallows. “I know, it’s alright. You’re doing great.”

And she is, apparently - her lover’s breathing is already tight, and her eyes huge and dark. Cassandra smiles, her gaze shifting to Varric with a curious headtilt.

He chuckles. “You know how it works, sweetheart. You _do _have one of your own, after all.”

She huffs. “Yes, but -”

“I know.” He trails a hand down Hawke’s stomach, his fingers meeting hers. “Here, follow me.”

They move together, circling Hawke lightly in tandem, stopping when her hips buck and starting again as she calms. Cassandra relishes the differences - Varric's sturdy, steady fingers against her own, Hawke's wet softness underneath her.

“Stop teasing,” she whispers, and Cassandra dips between her lips, smearing the moisture over her clit, rewarded with another jolt of her hips and a cry.

“I think you got this,” smirks Varric, pulling his hand back to toy with Hawke's breasts gently. “Make her scream, sweetheart.”

Cassandra slides a finger inside her easily, coaxing more soft noises from her as she admires her work. A soft sheen of sweat forms on the woman's forehead as she writhes and moans, and soon enough Cassandra is rewarded with needy whines. Varric offers soft encouragement, his own hands continuing to tease and rub at Hawke's body.

Cassandra finds her eyes drawn more and more to her core, glistening and tempting. She hesitates for a moment, before pressing her lips against Hawke's centre.

“Oh - _oh_, Andraste’s sacred -” Hawke's hand tightens around the sheets. “There - there, please, _there_ -”

Her tongue swirls, and she is rewarded with a scream - a soul-warming cry from her lover as her body trembles with the effort. She presses soft kisses to her thighs, smiling as Hawke comes down.

“Please - please -”

“Varric, I think she wants more.” Cassandra tilts her head impishly, feeling daring as she pulls her hand away. “Would you -”

“I think I'm up to the task,” he laughs, “take her hands.”

Together they haul Hawke up, gentle as Varric lines himself up against her entrance.

“Easy does it, gorgeous -”

“Varric - Varric, _please_ -”

Cassandra watches, wide-eyed, as the woman sinks onto his length with little resistance, her head tipped back as she lets out a wail.

“_Maker_, you're so - how are you so _big_, every time you fuck me it feels bigger!”

He nips at her shoulder, hands tightening around her hips. “Flattery will get you far, Hawke.”

Cassandra shuffles closer, fingers seeking out that sensitive nub once more as Varric begins a punishing pace. Her hand slips and slides around until she falls into step, smiling up at the look on their faces.

“Is this what you wanted, my Champion?”

Hawke whimpers, hands grappling for purchase on anything she can reach. “P-please -”

“To see you like this... it is all I have been able to think of, Hawke. Watching you fall apart at our touch, watching Varric fuck you, that face -” she laughs as she leans in close. “I _love_ that look on your face. You can barely stand so much pleasure.”

Varric groans. “Sweetheart, keep that talk up and this won't last much longer -”

Cassandra's free hand slips between her own legs, her crescendo not far off as she touches herself. “Will you come again? For us?”

Hawke grabs Cassandra by the hair, yanking her forward into a bruising kiss broken only by the desperate moans that Varric forces from her. “Yes - fuck, _yes_, I'm going to - to -”

Varric’s knuckles are white, his grip tight as he pounds her, and Cassandra pulls back just far enough to watch Hawke's body fall apart around him, her cries high and keening.

She feels her own release rush through her, a quieter affair as she bites her lip, and Varric is moments behind with a shuddering groan as he finally stills, and all at once the pair fall back against the bed, Hawke still twitching feebly with whimpering noises.

Cassandra rises on wobbly legs, finding a washcloth and tending to them both with soft murmurs and gentle smiles.

“You are so wonderful,” she tells Hawke, who mumbles something and reaches up to cup her face, an exhausted but no doubt satisfied smile on her face.

She turns to Varric, his arm wrapped around the Champion’s waist, and chuckles as he shivers at the cool touch. “Thank you,” she says, and he tugs her into a sweet kiss before snuggling under Hawke's arm.

Cassandra puts the cloth aside and pulls the blanket over them, reaching for her shirt.

“Stay,” mumbles Hawke, so incoherent that the Seeker asks her to repeat it, but her hand curls around her lover's wrist and does not let go, and so Cassandra slips into the crook of her body and finds herself content in the warmth of Hawke's presence.

* * *

Waking up next to the Champion and her storyteller leaves a wonderful feeling in Cassandra's chest, and though most mornings she would be up and preparing for the day, today she finds herself watching Hawke sleep on.

“Mornin’,” Varric says in a rough voice.

Their eyes meet, over Hawke’s head, and Cassandra feels a thrill as he smiles.

“You amaze me, sweetheart.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah.”

She raises an eyebrow. “How?”

“Just… how quickly you’ve come to terms with all this. I never really expected it, but when you’ve known Hawke as long as I have, you tend to just roll with it. But _you_… you just fell into step. It’s great.” He smiles, and she marvels at the soft expression on his face.

“It suits you.”

“What does?”

“Being happy.” She smiles, propping her head up on her arm. “You look… oh, I do not have the word for it.”

“Old?” he teases.

“Radiant.”

He blinks, clearly surprised. “Flatterer.”

She laughs, reaching over to trail a finger over the soft skin that was blissfully stress-free for once. “If you could only see what I see, Varric,” she murmurs. “You would understand how we came to love you so.”

He kisses her palm, before tugging on her hand. “C’mere.”

“But Hawke -”

“Will be asleep for a while. Besides, last night was all about her. I want some quality time with you.”

She blushes, but crawls over the sleeping woman to straddle Varric’s hips, hands either side of his head as she smiles down at him. “Like this?”

He grins up at her. “Not quite.” He grabs her waist and flips her onto her back, kneeling between her legs as his hand trails between her legs. “Much better.”

“Var- _ah_.” Her hand runs up his arm, gripping his shoulder. “Mm.”

“Good?”

“Yes.” She laughs. “As if you could ever be anything but.” She tilts her head up, capturing his lips in a lazy kiss, and his hand continues its slow teasing, her hips rocking against him. It is dizzying, how he makes her feel, and she pulls away breathless as he holds her gaze.

“Look at me.” He tilts his hips. “Look at me, I want to see -”

Her mouth drops open, silent as his cock presses into her slowly, deliciously. Her hands grasp at his shoulders, breath stilted, gasping.

“Oh,” she manages. “_Oh_.”

Varric sheathes himself fully in her, pressing a kiss to the dip between her breasts. “Okay?”

“Mm. It has been a while.”

He smiles. “We’ll go slow.”

“No. I want -” She can feel her cheeks burning, but he moves and suddenly she does not _care_. “I want you to fuck me. I want to feel like Hawke did.”

His eyebrow quirks up, and she laughs, arms wrapping around his neck. “Can you manage that, dwarf?”

“Oh, you’re asking for it, Seeker,” he growls, hands sliding over her hips to grab her ass and hike it up close. She gasps, legs wrapping around his waist.

“Like that -”

“I gotcha, sweetheart. I've got what you want.” He moves, slow at first, and she savours the feel of him - her body rocking against his heat, his skin against hers, chest hair brushing against her torso as her arms tighten around her neck.

“Faster, my love, please -” Her voice is wrung out, more desperate than she would like, and he huffs out a laugh.

“So demanding.” He obliges, of course, hands tight on her hips as he picks up the pace, fucking her harder, deeper, faster. Her back arches, coaxing him on, her sighs and whimpers transformed into soft cries and his name in halted breaths. It is all too much, this feeling inside her, and she clings to him, begging.

“Varric - _oh_, Varric, please -”

“Come on, sweetheart,” he pants. “Come on. With me, Cassandra - come with me -”

“Yes - yes, oh, yes -” Her forehead presses against his, mouth hanging open as he pounds into her, desperate noises as he sends her over the edge. “Yes - oh - oh, _Varric_ -”

With a groan he thrusts up into her, holding her there as he releases, only relaxing after a long sigh escapes him.

“_Fuck_, sweetheart.” His forehead rests against hers, short breaths mingling. “I love you,” he whispers.

She smiles, feeling her heart skip. “_Varric_.”

“I do. I love you, Cassandra.”

“And I you, my love.” She tilts her head, kissing him tenderly. “So very much.”

Hawke sighs deeply, and the pair turn to find her propped up on one elbow, broad smile on her face.

“You two are cute.”

As one, they roll their eyes.

“Hawke -” starts Varric.

“You are! I could watch this all day, honestly. So sweet.”

Cassandra laughs. “Oh, well then, if you do not wish to join us…”

“Hey, hey, I never said _that!_”

* * *

Adamant.

They fall, together. They fight, together. The Nightmare separates them for a moment, and Cassandra and Varric run for the rift, the dwarf slipping through with Solas in hot pursuit. The Seeker stops to find sight of the Inquisitor, the Warden and Hawke.

They do not move.

Cassandra watches them, the other side of the Nightmare. A heated debate, though only a few of their words carry across the void. But she knows that look on Hawke’s face, understands that sad smile.

Her fingers tighten on the hilt of her blade. “How dare you,” she breathes.

In front of her, the Nightmare rears. Cassandra steels herself. After all, she is the Hero of Orlais. She has taken down dragons, defeated demons - what is one Nightmare when weighed against the life of her Champion?

Nothing, she decides, and charges at the beast, dealing a glancing blow at best, but enough to buy them all the time they needed. With a cry, she lands awkwardly, pain lancing through her leg. Everything goes fuzzy, and for a moment she thinks she might have hit her head. But then strong arms haul her up, Hawke pulling her close to her chest.

“Fucking hell, Cass, that was reckless.”

“_You_ do not get to be angry with _me_,” she spits out, before crying out again. Her leg spasms, and a wave of nausea floods through her. “Leave me.”

“Like hell.”

“And yet you would have stayed.”

“That was diff-”

A roar behind them, and the Inquisitor pushes them through the rift -

_ **whooosh** _

“-frent,” finishes the woman as her feet hit the floor. Varric rushes to them, face pale.

“Are you alright?”

“Cass decided to play hero.”

“Varric, my leg -”

“Shit.” His eyes are wide, and what little blood remained in his face quickly falls away. “Cassandra -”

“What is it?”

“You… you need help. I’ll get help. HEALERS!” He scurries away, and Cassandra grunts as Hawke puts her down gently.

“Red lyrium,” she says quietly. “You have a shard of it sticking out your leg.”

Cassandra closes her eyes. “Shit.”

“I wasn’t going to -”

“Yes you _were_. Do not lie to me.”

“Cass -”

“All of us, we once said. All of us. Did you think it would be alright? That Varric and I would have each other, and that would be good enough?” She is crying, party from the pain and partly from her anger. “That we would not be so badly wounded?”

“Please -”

“_Ha_ \- my leg - if it is to be cut off, tell them to be swift. I do not intend to die today.”

“Nobody’s losing a leg, sweetheart,” says Varric as he rejoins them, kneeling at her other side and wiping the sweat from her face. His own skin had regained some colour. “Besides, I like your legs.”

She manages a laugh through gritted teeth. “I am quite fond of them, myself.” The healers swarm, and she is overwhelmed, but her hand tightens around Hawke’s. “Tell him,” she hisses. “Tell him.”

And then it goes dark, and there is nothing but the pain.

* * *

Cassandra wakes to a heavy warmth on her abdomen, and smiles at the familiar dwarf asleep on her stomach. Loathe as she is to wake him, she needs to move -

Her leg explodes in pain, and she cries out, startling Varric awake.

“Shit - shit, are you alright?”

“My leg - how bad is it?”

“They got the lyrium out, but it’s infected pretty bad. Hawke stayed up for two days to try and -”

“Two days?!”

“Yeah. It’s not gonna be a pretty scar, but you’ll be right as rain in time.” He kisses the back of her hand. “Scared the shit outta me, sweetheart. Don’t - don’t do that again.”

“I am sorry.”

“Hawke’s pretty shaken up, too. But that’s more from your tongue-lashing.”

She pulls a face. “She told you what she intended?”

“Yeah.” He shrugs. “That’s Hawke.”

“You cannot just - _accept _that!”

“We fell in love with a tempest, Seeker. She’s a hero, and heroes do stupid things for the people they love.” He shrugs again, kissing each of her knuckles. “You’re both as bad as each other, both willing to die for everyone else. You’re gonna make me grey within six months, if I left you two alone.”

“I am not -”

“Yes, you are.” He chuckles. “Trust me, sweetheart, you’re just as much hero material as she is. Always have been. Am I upset you got hurt? Yeah, of course. You’re both idiots for hanging around. But am I glad you two survived? More than anything.”

She reaches up, stroking his cheek. “My love. I will _always _come back to you.”

He smiles weakly. “I know. So will I, until I can’t. And so will Hawke, until she doesn’t. But that’s something we just have to accept, the way things are in the world these days.” He kisses her knuckles again. “I love you.”

“And I you.”

“She does, too.” He jerks his head slightly, and she turns to face the other side of the room. Hawke stands in the doorway, and Cassandra can see the exhaustion in her frame. She takes a deep breath.

“Come.”

“Cass -”

“Just… come.”

She looks oddly small as she hurries over to the bed, stopping just shy of them. “Cass, I -”

“You might have died, my love.”

“You almost did! Your leg -”

“To stop you. To save you. I would do it again in a heartbeat.” She lifts her chin up slightly. “Without regret.”

Hawke pales, her eyes wide. Opposite her, Varric shrugs.

“You can’t be surprised, gorgeous. You’d do it for us.”

She swallows, before reaching out with trembling hands to straighten the sheets. “You stubborn - stupid, stubborn woman,” she whispers. “I can’t - I’ve lost so much. I can’t lose you as well.”

Cassandra smiles, reaching for her hand. “Come.”

She crawls onto the edge of the bed, one arm wrapping around the Seeker’s waist. “Sorry.”

“I love you. I will not suffer losing you lightly.”

Hawke buries her face into Cassandra’s neck. “M’sorry. So sorry”

“I know.”

“I didn't mean -”

She kisses the top of her head. “I know.”

“I - I love -”

“Sshhh. It is alright. I am sorry for my anger.” She chuckles. “It seems my passion for you two will always be with sharp edges.”

Varric smiles weakly as he shuffles onto the bed, carefully curling into Cassandra’s free side. “Just like mine’s always with eye-rolling and sarcasm,” he points out.

Hawke mumbles something, but it is lost in the weak sob that follows, and Varric’s hand comes up to stroke her hair gently.

“Hey, gorgeous. It’s alright. Just us here. You can let it out.”

“You do not have to be strong,” Cassandra murmurs into her hair. “We are here to help you bear your aches. All of us, together. Always.”

Something breaks, and Hawke cries, quiet whimpering noises as she clings to them. They make a fine mess, thinks Cassandra, as Varric rests his head on her chest, his smile gentle as he looks up at her. Three survivors, three orphans, finding a home within a world that had taken from them everything. Cassandra holds them close. Her loves, her hearts. Her leg aches, but in truth she has never felt better.


End file.
